Stuff I Liked Last… Month: “Where’d February Go?” Edition

The first doctor told me that he’d seen cases of it taking more than a month to go away. The second one — the one who put me on antibiotics after two full weeks of feeling like I’d been tossed from a moving vehicle — told me she ended up in the emergency room with her own version of the hellish virus that ate my February. I hadn’t been this sick since I got floored with pneumonia back in the 90s.

If you asked where the hell I disappeared to (I’m looking at you, Katrina), well, thank you. I was, as they say in the medical profession, Really Fucking Sick. Okay, they don’t say those words exactly.

I surfaced a few days ago and have been struggling to get caught up on my projects; even the production tasks feel like a respite from the foggy tedium of codeine laced cough medicine and fatigue and… oh, this is so boring and I am done whining now. Mostly. I sure would like those three weeks back.

There were little windows in my virus ridden existence that did not completely suck. In the hopes of getting back into the swing of things, here’s a round up of stuff I liked while fighting the good fight.

A note: I have stopped adding Amazon links to these posts. I would really LIKE to continue using them, but, well, this. I’m linking to other places. Dammit, Amazon, Get it together. 

Zipbuds: I’ve gone through too many sets of earbuds to mention, including shelling out for some fancy names, they all break. I got a set of Slide Sport Zipbuds a while back and hey, they broke too. BUT. They have a lifetime guarantee and a super low hassle return policy.  I had a new pair in hand just a few days after checking in with Zipbuds. It’s so rare that you get real customer service anymore. I was delighted, plus, I have new earbuds. Here’s a 15% off code [THANKYOU15] go get yourself a pair here, pronto, before the code expires.

All the President’s Men: The typewriters. The feathered hair. The wide collars. The sexy, sexy, shoe leather journalism that happened nowhere near the White House briefing room. Oh man. It was good to be reminded how long it took to bring Nixon down and how patient, persevering research pays off. I don’t feel like we have two years to get at the current administration, it feels so much more dangerous, but I appreciated the reminder that the news doesn’t come from Sean Spicer. It comes from getting in your old Volvo and knocking on doors and asking for coffee refills because you sense you don’t have the story yet. The settings in the movie have aged, but the story hasn’t.

The Regular Show: What the hell, how is it none of you told me about Rigby and Mordecai? I gotta find out on my own at Season 8, the last one? I am a grown up who is unashamed that I like cartoons and well written weird ones with classic rock/pop songs woven through as the sound track? WHY DID NONE OF YOU TELL ME?

I just watched the episode with the grilled cheese and the astronauts and oh, go find yourself some Regular Show, already.

The Washington Coast: I spent the last days of my recovery at a vacation rental on the Long Beach Peninsula with my friend Jess (and our guys, and Harley the Dog). We used the sun room as a co-working space and spent the rest of the time knitting, cooking, generally lolling about with no particular agenda. There was one spectacular day — it was downright warm on on the sand — and Harley ran all over the place. It was impossible to observe his unleashed enthusiasm without bursting out in laughter.

The Washington Coast is wildly unpredictable for weather — we had torrential rain, warm sunshine, and even some snow. I love the drive along Willapa Bay and it is never a bad thing to look at the great expanse of the Pacific disappearing over the horizon.

Oh, I wrote some things! 

• The Last Jews of the Blues Highway: I needed about 5000 more words, but even in its tiny 800 w0rd state, I’m really proud of this piece.
• “I don’t know when we’re going to get another chance”: I’m working on a project where I interview people about end of life planning. My friend Kevin graciously agreed to be my first candidate and was so generous with his story.
• Longreads: I have mentioned that I’ve joined the contributors team. I love being part of this community; they’re all unabashedly opinionated about what makes good work. I’ve linked to my posts but you really should subscribe. There are no ads and your payment goes to fund original work like this piece about birding by my friend Eva Holland.

So, hey. I am still here. Go figure. How about you? Are you still out there?